trans_9 | Newbie Meet N' Greet

Mara had gotten distracted from talk of Luke's father by an observation she should have picked up awhile ago. One hand caught Luke by the chin, turning his face to look at her. She knew this man well enough to catch basic differences, and something was off.

"Farm boy, I don't know what you've been doing, but you look like you've aged a couple decades in the last couple of months. What kind of missions does the New Republic have you on?"

Luke stared at Mara, not comprehending her question at first. Older? What was she talking about? Okay, Caedus' war had more than likely added more gray hairs and a few wrinkles, but--

Then he started noticing things.

Mara would always be beautiful to him, of course, and in the over twenty years they'd been married she hadn't changed much to his eyes, but there were subtle things about her now, details he'd missed in the initial rush of joy at seeing her alive and holding her in his arms again. No strands of gray in her vibrant red hair, none of the fine lines on her face--that had all come after the Yuuzhan Vong, after Ben's birth.

Something was different here, very different, and Luke's brow furrowed as he realized it was because Mara was younger than she had been when--

Part of Luke's brain rebelled against this egregious error in judgment that was about to be committed, but the part of him that was completely dumbfounded by this thought beat that part into submission.

"Mara," he said slowly, "Forgive me for asking, but how old are you?"

Both eyebrows tried to disappear under that infamous hair. When was the last time someone was stupid enough to just ask her a question like that? In the most technical sense, she didn't actually know the answer to that. She didn't know when she was born, or where, but the medics had a good guess as to her age.

"The same age as you, Skywalker. Thirty-five."

The warning bells were already going off as soon as she said it. They were the same age, but he looked older than her, and there was a young man calling himself General Kenobi . . .

"I'm sixty," he said slowly, almost as though he himself didn't believe it. The implications of this temporal rift slapped Luke upside the head. Thirty-five, he thought, that would put them at the Caamas Document crisis, when he had gone off after a vision of Mara appearing lifeless in a pool of water--right around the time he'd proposed and they'd been married. But something told him...

"What was going on before your pod popped?" he asked quickly, suddenly very intense, looking her right in the eyes.

Mara was staring right back at him, feeling that intensity like a slap against her senses. She had the urge to back up, get away from this. From the look in his eyes, she wasn't going to enjoy any of this conversation.

"There was a rumor about the Bothans starting up, it has your sister scrambling all over the galaxy. I don't know any of the details, I've been busy with my own company. Karrde hasn't found a way to profit from this. Yet. I'm sure he will soon enough. Last thing I was remember was being on board the Jade's Fire, heading to meet with a customer."

"Not to interrupt," Obi-Wan broke in, clearly meaning to interrupt the cycle of cold shock and that hard rush of fear at being all out of time and space— he knew it well, having dealt so far with Luke who was at least an entire generation displaced, "But perhaps this can wait until we're seated, and have something to drink. There's no need to give each other heart attacks. Besides, you're both projecting. Anyone on the ship with any sensitivity to the Force will be able to hear exactly what you're feeling."

And by anyone, of course, he meant Anakin, Arha, and Sheeana. If they didn't want an audience, a quick retreat to the sensoriums, or the city, would be in order.

Like a chagrined youngling just learning control, Luke carefully locked down what he was feeling. Even so, he could feel it threatening to escape, pushing against the walls he put up to--well, everyone but Mara. He could never lock her out completely, he didn't have it in him, even now when he realized she had no idea... she wasn't...

"Yeah, we should go somewhere quiet," he heard himself say. It sounded as though it was coming from someone else.

"Back off, General. We don't need a babysitter." Mara's fingers tensed against Luke for a second while she flashed a look of irritation at the strange man that was not helping. They were officially nothing more than partners on multiple missions, occasionally teacher and student, but that didn't stop that flare of protectiveness. Luke was badly shaken, it was still obvious to her since he wasn't blocking it from her.

To say nothing about bringing up her sometimes hit and miss control. Mara never responded particularly well to that. She forced her fingers to relax again, her unaffected mask dropping back over her features like nothing had happened.

"Fine, Skywalker. Let's get out of this mob."

Obi-Wan's eyebrows took a brief scenic vacation to his hairline at Mara's half-snarled snapping. For a moment he felt completely superfluous. Unwanted, unneeded, without directive or authority, the bottom had fallen out of the conversation entirely. It made him pause, missing a step and trailing behind while he struggled to find again that willful suspension of horror that let Obi-Wan maintain the calmness in this utterly inescapable nightmare of a reality. It was only a wobble, but it rocked him off balance, and he knew he leaked it, if only for a moment, if only to Luke who seemed so well attuned.

Then he followed them, frowning but without comment. What a mess.

Luke turned to look back at Obi-Wan, having recovered enough to be apologetic (and sending him as much in the Force before respectfully backing off) and leading the way out into a less crowded part of the observation deck.

"You could have been a little nicer," he murmured quietly to Mara. "He didn't mean anything by it."

Anakin came into view as he walked up to them, having already been on the observation deck. He seemed like he was about to say something about how secluded he had been keeping when he noticed the woman standing with Luke. He could sense something about her, but he wasn't quite sure what.

Looking to Luke with a bit of confusion. "Ah, a friend of yours?" Obviously Anakin didn't trust anyone until he knew them better.

He shifted his gaze back to Mara and bowed his head. "Oh, forgive me. My name is Anakin Skywalker."

Her temper was still up, but she didn't get a chance to reply to Luke's comment. Instead there was yet another person walking up to them, one that had a familiar feel to him. Something that she had felt before, but with a very different look.

Mara was rapidly approaching just how much she could deal for one day. And being introduced to Anakin Skywalker when he was younger than her? That was more than she would usually be willing to deal with on any day. Like throwing a switch, she pulled herself in tightly. A simple, self defense response to the situation, taught to her by Palpatine herself.

"Mara Jade. And yeah, I'm a friend of the this Skywalker."

Ah, Anakin. At least here Obi-Wan knew where he stood, He fell back into step and put a gentle, restraining hand on his former padawan's shoulder. Calm, spoke his touch, and patience, that same unassuming gesture he'd used a hundred times or more, "Mara Jade, this is my former padawan, Anakin Skywalker. A very fine Jedi Knight, by any reasonable standard."

Edited 2009-10-03 04:19 (UTC)

As if things weren't complicated enough. Luke collected himself carefully, even managing a smile at his father. "Hello," he said, glad to see Anakin but feeling the tension rise exponentially. And Mara had completely shut herself down.

Anakin smiled as Obi-Wan gave him praise. It was something he felt he didn't get enough of, but that was a story for another day. This time he would take it at least. His expression shifted to a small grin.

"That's only because I had the best teacher."

His expression settled somewhat as he shifted his gaze from Luke and back to Mara again.

"At least you have a friend here, we should be all thankful we are not alone."

One eyebrow went up at Anakin's comment. She knew a thing or two about cocky young men, many pilots fell under that heading, and this one just screamed of pride. Mara's responses and presence in the Force was down to zero, but she was keeping herself physically close to Luke. Almost close enough for them to touch. He was the only one in the room she actually trusted.

"Are there any more surprises that I'll be meeting, farmboy?" Bright green eyes looked toward Luke. While the words were teasing, her eyes were deadly serious.

"No," he said. His fingers brushed her hand--a warning (Please don't get into a duel with my father) and a gentle touch that he enjoyed and took strength from. "No more surprises. I'm saving them all for what I'm going to tell you later."

Luke felt his attempt at humor fall horribly flat, and subsided into an awkward silence, blue eyes focused on his wife.

Anakin wasn't always the observant type mostly because he didn't pay attention to things that weren't directly involving him. However, the way Luke and Mara stood next to each other really stood out in his mind. He looked at him with an almost curious expression. But he didn't comment on the matter. If it bothered him too much, he'd just corner Luke later and try to get him to talk.

Instead he glanced to Obi-Wan. "Master, I've been meaning to speak with you. I wanted to apologize for the way I've been... acting lately. I just have a lot on my mind." He stated plainly, all the while keeping an eye on Luke and Mara out of the corner of his eye.

As Luke fell silent, and Anakin talked to his Master, Mara's fingers tangled in with the ones that had brushed against her. It wasn't the first time she'd grabbed on to his hand when things were getting out of her control.

She wanted to just drag him away so they could finish their conversation. Having Anakin's presence around her again after so many years was making her feel completely off balance, and she honestly did not want to have a tough conversation with Luke while Vader watched on. She had never worked well with him.

Obi-Wan smiled, "It's alright, I know it's...difficult. Here, more than usual, and with—"

He gestured at Luke and Mara to signify the entire issue with alternate or future timelines and family memebers that technically didn't yet exist. It didn't bear an easy explanation, "We should talk, but not now, and certainly not here."

Obi-Wan wasn't blind, of course. He'd seen— and felt — Mara's tensing at Anakin's arrival. Perhaps in the future they found themselves at opposite ends of a fight. She had said she wasn't a Jedi, after all.

"Yeah, why don't we go to the Sensoriums?" Luke suggested. "Anywhere's better than standing here."

Really, the confusion from the other people here was just seeping into him, even through the mental walls. It didn't help the situation any--at all, really. But he gave Mara's hand a gentle squeeze, and glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She, at least, was here, and even though she was from before their marriage he took a measure of comfort from that.

Mara was here, she was alive. That was a start.

Anakin shifted his gaze back to Mara. He could sense that something was off, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. He'd have to probe Luke for information later. For now he'd let it slide.

"Ah well. I almost forgot how jarring it is when you first arrive here. Eh, even though it wasn't that long ago for myself."

He shrugged.

"Well I do suppose we should move some place else as Luke suggested. I'm not a big fan of crowds anyway." He smiled slightly and looked between the group. He was trying to be friendly... trying at least.

Mara followed after Luke as they set out to change locations. Anakin might be trying to attempt at being friendly, but the smuggler wasn't even bothering with that much effort. The weight of her lightsaber was more of a comfort than usual in this situation, but she was hoping to avoid a duel.

We'll discuss everything later. Alone.

Her thoughts were directed very specifically at Luke, since she had no interest in having a tricky conversation with an audience like this. As far as Anakin and Obi-Wan were concerned, she was using every trick Palpatine had taught her to lock herself down. She had been taught to fool Darth Vader, there was a decent shot it would hold up with the men currently walking near her.

Newbie Meet N' Greet

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